Eddie Alvarez won’t be fighting any time soon if his case with Bellator MMA goes to trial.

According to documents filed Monday in U.S. district court, the two parties aren’t required to see each other in court until after Sept. 15, 2014, when a pre-trial conference may take place.

That means it could be near the end of 2014 before a jury gets involved, unless a settlement takes place.

In January, the ex-champ and the Viacom-owned promotion filed dueling lawsuits primarily over a matching clause in the fighter’s contract. Alvarez (24-3 MMA, 8-1 BFC) seeks to free himself from the promotion to sign a deal with the UFC.

The fighter largely has been quiet since giving a series of interviews accusing Bellator of shady behavior after the expiration of his previous contract with the promotion. Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney has denied any underhanded dealings with the fighter and indicated they’ll see each other in court.

Attorneys for Alvarez and Bellator outlined a plan for moving forward with the case, which calls for the discovery portion to be completed by Feb. 28, 2014 and depositions, or out-of-court testimony, by July 28. The two may add parties to the case by Oct. 15 of this year.

Discovery is a pre-trial phase where parties obtain evidence, which may include documents, depositions or requests for an opposing party to admit or deny allegations.

Earlier this month, Alvarez and Bellator also signed off on a confidentiality agreement, which means only their respective lawyers will be privy to evidence gathered until the trial.

Neither Alvarez or Bellator were available for comment when contacted today by MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).

Alvarez’s most recent cage appearance came in October 2012 at Bellator 76, where he knocked out Patricky Freire in his final contractual obligation for the promotion.

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